PA Gaming Control Board fines casino for allowing underage gambling

Board also places seven adults on exclusion list for gambling at casinos while leaving children unattended

HARRISBURG, PA: The Pennsylvania Gaming Control Board (“Board”) on Wednesday approved a consent agreement presented by the Board’s Office of Enforcement Counsel (“OEC”) during its public meeting that fined a casino for an incident in which an 18-year-old gained access to the gaming floor and gambled.

The approved consent agreement was the result of negotiations between OEC and Greenwood Gaming and Entertainment, Inc, operator of Parx Casino in Bucks County. 

The $10,000 fine was levied after casino personnel permitted entry to an 18-year-old male onto the gaming floor who then gambled at a gaming table. Pennsylvania law prohibits an individual under the age of 21 from accessing the gaming floor or gambling in a casino. It is the responsibility of casino personnel to verify the age of an individual accessing its casino and engaging in gaming activities.

A copy of the approved consent agreement offering more details on this matter is available upon request through the Board’s Office of Communications.

The Board also acted on petitions by OEC to ban seven adults from all casinos in the Commonwealth for leaving a total of 13 children unattended in order to gamble.

The Board’s actions serve as a reminder that adults are prohibited from leaving minors unattended in the parking lot or garage, a hotel, or other venues at a casino since it creates a potentially unsafe and dangerous environment for the children.  Leaving minors unattended at a Pennsylvania casino subjects the offending adult to criminal prosecution in addition to exclusion from all Pennsylvania casinos.

UNATTENDED MINORS DETAILS

•  Two male patrons were placed on the Involuntary Exclusion List after leaving two children, ages 2 and 7, unattended in a vehicle in the Harrah’s Philadelphia Casino and Racetrack parking garage. The children were unattended for 12 minutes while the adults wagered in the sportsbook;

•  A male patron was placed on the Involuntary Exclusion List after leaving a 2-year-old child unattended in a vehicle in the Valley Forge Casino Resort parking lot. The child was unattended for 6 minutes while the adult wagered in the sportsbook;

•  A female patron was placed on the Involuntary Exclusion List after leaving a 15-year-old child unattended in her vehicle in the Harrah’s Philadelphia Casino and Racetrack parking garage. The child was unattended for over 7 hours while the adult gambled at various games in the casino;

•  A female patron was placed on the Involuntary Exclusion List after leaving five children, an infant and other children ages 1, 9, 10, and 14, unattended in the food court of the Valley Forge Casino Resort. The children were unattended for 64 minutes while the adult wagered at slot machines;

•  A male patron was placed on the Involuntary Exclusion List after leaving a 13-year-old child unattended in a vehicle in the Presque Isle Downs & Casino parking lot. The child was unattended for 21 minutes while the adult wagered in the sportsbook; and,

•  A male patron was placed on the Involuntary Exclusion List after leaving three children, an infant and two other children who were 6-years-old, unattended in a vehicle in the Presque Isle Downs & Casino parking lot. The children were unattended for 16 minutes while the adult wagered in the sportsbook.

The next meeting of the Board is scheduled for 10:00 a.m., Wednesday, December 14, 2022 in the Board’s Public Hearing Room located on the second floor of the Strawberry Square Complex in Harrisburg.